Reporter ‘offered to sell names of victims’
A FORMER police officer in the Jonathan King case who is now a TV documentary reporter offered to sell the names of the pop mogul’s victims, according to a judge.
Investigative reporter Mark Williams-Thomas, who made his name in a documentary exposing Jimmy Savile, has claimed to have solved a number of high-profile cases, including the murder of TV host Jill Dando.
But yesterday his professional reputation was called into question after Judge Deborah Taylor delivered a withering assessment of his previous work for Surrey Police on the King case. Before he left the force in October 2000 Mr Williams-Thomas was the detective who interviewed the first man to accuse King of sexual assault. He was subsequently accused – and acquitted – of blackmail in an unrelated case.
Yesterday the judge said: ‘ During the investigation into that offence a document was found on his computer offering for sale names and introductions to victims of Mr King.
‘There was also information that prior to Mr King’s arrest, Williams-Thomas said that he had been provided by a journalist with information about King. Williams-Thomas left taking his contemporaneous notebooks of his involvement with inquiries into Mr King with him.
‘No attempts had been made to obtain them, although it is the Crown’s position that he should not have taken them with him as they were the property of Surrey Police.’
The judge added that it had been suggested ‘there was deliberate concealment of his previous prosecution and of the documents indicating attempts to gain financial advantage from selling details of Mr King’s case’. Yesterday Mr Williams-Thomas denied ever knowing the victims’ identities, or offering them for sale.
The ex-officer, who is working with Simon Cowell’s production company on a crime investigation series, said: ‘I have for the first time today been made aware that my name has been mentioned in a ruling by HHJ Deborah Taylor in the case against Jonathan King.
‘I am with immediate effect making contact with the CPS to seek clarification on these matters.’
Selling victims’ details would constitute an offence of misconduct in a public office. The maximum penalty is life in prison.